14 September 2017

News Story: ALP To Expand Under New US Strategy

An Afghan Police Officer (File Photo)
By Sharif Amiri

Officials from the directorate of the Afghan Local Police (ALP) said on Tuesday that under the new US war strategy, the local police forces will take on more responsibilities in the fight against insurgents on the battlefields.

The head of the directorate, Ghulam Mohammad Azizi Gharnai, said currently the local police are responsible for maintaining security of 40 percent of the country. However, they expect the number of troops to increase in the near future.

According to the ALP, their personnel is not only involved on the battlefields, but they are also often advance teams ahead of operations by the Special Forces. 

“In every part of the country, the local police along with other forces fight the insurgents and sacrifice their lives,” Sekandar Mohammad Asghari, deputy head of the directorate of local police said.

However there have been reports regarding the misuse of weapons and authorities by the ALP in parts of the country.

The ALP said measures are being taken to prevent such incidents in future.

“Unfortunately we also have heard of such things, but we also have worked a lot to prevent such actions,” said Gharnai.

Read the full story at TOLOnews